Editorial: Veto of forced school prayer a wise move

Editorial

Thursday

Aug 30, 2007 at 12:01 AMAug 30, 2007 at 2:20 AM

Given the intense criticism that has been lobbed at Gov. Rod Blagojevich of late, it would probably have been a lot easier for him to just quietly sign Senate Bill 1463 - a bill that would have required each public school classroom in the state to begin each day with a moment of silence.

After all, the General Assembly took the easy way out in passing the bill. Legislators know that it is a lot easier for political opponents to put out campaign pamphlets questioning their "moral values" than it is to explain why they would oppose what amounts to forced school prayer.

We applaud the governor for not taking the easy way out and instead vetoing this unneeded and unwise mandate.
Blagojevich issued a relatively short, but insightful, veto message late Tuesday afternoon.

"Prayer plays an important part in the lives of many people. It certainly does in mine. I believe in prayer. I believe in the power of prayer. I also believe that our founding fathers wisely recognized the personal nature of faith and prayer, and that is why the separation of church and state is a centerpiece of our constitution, our democracy and our freedoms," wrote Blagojevich.

"The law in Illinois today already allows teachers and students the opportunity to take a moment for silent thought or prayer, if they choose to. I believe this is the right balance between the principles echoed in our constitution, and our deeply held desire to practice our faith. As a parent, I am working with my wife to raise our children to respect prayer and to pray because they want to pray - not because they are required to. For this reason, I hereby veto and return Senate Bill 1463."

Five years ago, a bill amended the state's Silent Reflection Act, changing it to the Silent Reflection and Student Prayer Act and guaranteeing students the right to observe voluntary, nondisruptive prayer whenever they chose to during the school day.

The bill also allows for a moment of silence to begin the day if a teacher and his or her class choose to.

However, some were not seeking accommodation. They were seeking a mandate. And that is what Senate Bill 1463 did by substituting the word "shall" for the word "may." It is appropriate for the state to guarantee and to protect a person's right to pray if they wish to. That is freedom of religion.

It is not only inappropriate to force such prayer - and calling it silent meditation doesn't really fool anyone - it is also impossible.

The governor's veto message makes a salient point - our children should pray because they want to, not because the government forces them.